Wichita eagle., 1887-02-03
ga1ly e gayle
PRESIDENT TYLER.
THE WAY THE EARLYvIRGINIA PRES!-
DENTS BOUGHT THEIR WINE.

DENTS BOUGHT THEIR WINE.
Rum From Santa Cruz and Wine From
the Island of INSTRUMENTATION OF
the Virginia Ham White House
Meals.
Gen. John Tyler, the son of the presi-
dent, who was his fathers private secre-
tary while he was in the White House
and who still lives at Washington, has
given me some interesting facts regarding
the way the early Virginia presidents
bought their wines. Said he: "My
fathers cellars were always full of choice
wines and liquors, ell of which he i'm
ported himself, as was the custom of the
old Virginia families of his day. His
brandy he bought at London through
William Taylor, of Norfolk, who was a
noted wine dealer forty years ago. 1t cost
81 a gallon and was of a quality which
you could now hardly get for $40 q bottle.
His rum was imported for him in the same
way from Santa Cruz; and his Madeira,
which was the staple wine Of the time,
was brought from the Island Of Madeira
in the way common among the old Nir-
ginia planters. Every year my father
would set aside ten Or twelve acres for
Madeira corn. This was short cared,
pearly grained variety noted for is hartli-
ness. 1t was the only kind of corn at
that day which would stand the long
shipment across the ocean. Each of these
acres would produce from fifty TO hun
dred bushels of corn. When it was har-
vested it would be sent to n ship which a
number Of the planters, such as Chief
Justice Marshall and others, had char
tered to carry their corn to Madeira. st
the island this corn would be exchanged
for wine, the rate being one bushel of
corn to a gallon of wine, and the wine
would be brought back in the same ship
to Virginia 1t came to us in barrels or
pipes and we bottled it at home.
president Tyler was light eater"
continued his gray haired son, land he
often ate nothing at dinner but q piece Of
toast, cup of hot water tea and slice
of beef or ham. We always made our
own ham, and the Virginia ham of those
days was the finest in the world. Great
care was exercised as to the breeding of
the pigs. For the first summer and fall
they were allowed to run wild in the
woods, with q little corn in the evening
and the morning to teach them the call of
their master. During the first winter
they were fed on corn, but were still kept
out in the woods in the daytime, though
carefully housed and bedded at night
TIE FINAL FATTENTEG.
''The second fall, when they were about
IS months old, they we're turned into the
corn fields, which had been loosely har
vested and i'll which between the rows
had been planted black eyed peas. Upon
these and the refuse corn they grew fat.
Then they were taken up and fed Oh
selected corn, the cars of which must be
hard and perfect, until Christmas, when
they were killed and cured. The curing
was done by sailing the hams in brine
and then hanging them up in a smoke
house made for the purpose and smoking
them for several months with fires made
of hickory chips. After they had been
well smoked they were taken down and
rubbed al over with sugar. The fat was
now like white candy in appearance and
the hams were ready for use.
''Nhile my father was il the White
House we never thought Of cooking "a
slice OF ham. The meats were always
cooked in joints, and haIn, a saddle OF
mutton or leg OF lamb was never cut
before il came to the table. When Won
sat down 10 the table the meats were
served UP on it and you could see what
you were to eat. At the proper stage the
carver took each joint from the table and
bore il TO a side table, where it was cut
up and served with its appropriate yege-
table. President Tyler's style of living
was that of an English gentleman of the
present day. His meals were served on
the Virginia plan, he maintaining the same
customs at the White House as on his Viz
ginia estate. Daniel Webster used to say
the only trouble with my fathers table
was the profuseness with which every
thing was served. Prank 6. Carpenter
in LippincOtt's, Magazine.